


Frozen in Memory

by rockinmomoko



Series: Sun and Moon [2]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Episode: s01e18 The Waterbending Master, F/M, Family, Gen, How Do I Tag, Misogyny, OC-centric, Protective Siblings, Waterbending & Waterbenders
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-01
Updated: 2020-08-01
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:41:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,320
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25645975
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rockinmomoko/pseuds/rockinmomoko
Summary: “This fight is over.”“That one may be, but not this one.” Pakku was shocked as ice actually began creeping up to hold him in place. He quickly melted it and spun, sending it back towards the voice as a wave. His attacker was the other Southern Water tribe girl. He sneered at her.“What makes you think another fight with a little girl will make any difference?”Pakku knows something is familiar about this girl, but what is it?
Relationships: Kanna/Pakku (Avatar), Katara & Pakku (Avatar), Pakku & Original Female Character(s), Pakku & Sokka (Avatar), Zuko/Original Female Character(s) (implied)
Series: Sun and Moon [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1859098
Kudos: 59





	Frozen in Memory

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Embers](https://archiveofourown.org/works/3591783) by [Vathara](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vathara/pseuds/Vathara). 
  * Inspired by [Tempest in a Teacup](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/63600) by AkaVertigo. 



> I never really liked that the only reason Pakku agreed to teach Katara was because of his old relationship with Gran-Gran, so then I decided to write the scene with Kanna, and this happened. I'm not sure if it's any more or less nepotistic (is that a word? I think it is) than the original but here we are.
> 
> Also the first line is lifted directly from the episode
> 
> As always in this series, inspiration taken from Embers by Vathara and Tempest in a Teacup by AkaVertigo
> 
> Anyway, disclaimer: I own nothing of Avatar
> 
> Enjoy!

“This fight is over.”

“That one may be, but not this one.” Pakku was shocked as ice actually began creeping up to hold him in place. He quickly melted it and spun, sending it back towards the voice as a wave. His attacker was the other Southern Water tribe girl. He sneered at her.

“What makes you think another fight with a little girl will make any difference?”

“I’m not fighting you to learn from you. I want to learn to heal and if I have to choose between fighting katas and healing katas, I’ll gladly take the latter. But you have wronged my family and my tribe by refusing to teach our last waterbenders to fight after acknowledging the potential of at least one of them and I am honor-bound to retaliate. Fight me, or admit you have sacrificed your own honor.” He was shocked by the surety of her tone. She didn’t yell or become impassioned the way her sister had, instead simply watching him. She stood confidently, stance strong and hands unwavering. There was something familiar about her stance, but it wasn’t any waterbending form he knew. He narrowed his eyes at her words and at the nagging sense of familiarity. He couldn’t recall her name, having missed her initial introduction at the feast. No matter. He would deal with this… _woman_ … as easily as he had her sister. While Katara may have potential, culture and tradition were important. And after her disrespect he didn’t know if he would ever be able to truly treat her as a true student.

“Tell me girl, what is your name?”

“That’s not important here. All you need to know is that you have wronged my family and I will not stand for it.”

“Let your brother stand for you, as is tradition.”

“As the eldest, I stand for my family when my parents are absent. I will not back down, I will not yield. Fight me now.” And still her voice remained calm. Firm, unwavering, but calm. Her eyes had yet to leave his face, her mouth set in a grim line. He abruptly realized she looked just like his beloved, the day she left. His heart ached briefly at the thought of Kanna, and he determined that if only for her sake he would suffer the whims of this child. Although, he supposed, at 18 she was hardly a child. She even wore a betrothal necklace.

“Very well. We will fight.”

As he finished the sentence his arms moved, raising snow to spin around him and sent it as a drill towards the girl. As it approached her, she widened her stance, bringing her arms together. The snow drill met her fingertips and she parted it, bringing her arms down to her sides with the snow following. The snow collected itself and solidified into steely blue ice in the form of two dao blades. She spun, sweeping the blades close to the ground and a column of water swirled around her before speeding towards him. He pulled the water around and up under him, freezing it as he went, before he leapt and spun in the air, pulling water from the nearby pool to come down hard on her head. She rolled to the side to dodge, and stood before running towards where he landed, swords flashing. She swiped at him, pulling up disks of ice at the movement to follow behind her blows that he met with frozen shields. He melted the shields briefly then quickly froze them again around her blades, trapping them. She jumped, still holding the handles of her dao and kicked at him to break his stance. He rolled with the movement, and they both lost hold of the sword-shields.

She jumped to her feet and kicked high, water following her heel before she spun, sending icy shards flying towards him. He melted them and divided the water into three streams, sending them to surround her. His arms flowed, pulling and pushing more water from the snowy ground until she was encased in an orb of water, htough she had a bubble around her face. A smug grin pulled at his lips; he had finally subdued her.

He saw her take a deep breath and prepared himself for her attempt to freeze the water in order to shatter it. He sped the flow of the water, making it more difficult to freeze. However, as she exhaled the water temperature didn’t _drop_ , it _rose_. She lifted an arm and spun it around her head quickly before flinging both arms out to the side, exhaling heavily as she did so. The swirling water burst into a cloud of steam. As she landed, she quickly gathered the steam into what appeared to be boiling water before hurtling it at him; he attempted to gain control of it, but his shock made his movements slow. He was slammed back and down into the ground, the heat of the water stunning him further. He attempted to reorient himself and get to his feet but found himself stopped by a foot on his chest and an icy blade at his throat. She had reformed her ice broadswords in his confusion.

There was silence through the courtyard except for the sound of her heavy breathing. They stared at each other, her hair escaping its confines much as her sister’s had, and he was once again struck by the resemblance to Kanna. After several moments he inclined his head as much as he could with the blade beneath his chin and she stepped back. He rose to his feet and shook his head to clear it.

“It seems you’ve already had a Master, although I don’t believe I recognize any of the forms you used.” Her hands clenched tighter around the hilts of her blades, before relaxing again. Interesting. That was the first sign of anxiety he’d seen since she’d challenged him.

“You would be incorrect. I have had no waterbending Master.” He raised an eyebrow and folded his arms. Her dao remained in her hands, tips pointed toward the ground. Ready, but not threatening.

“I didn’t say you had a waterbending Master, simply a Master. You’ve clearly trained with blades,” he said, nodding towards the swords. Her eyes narrowed but her shoulders relaxed further. Instead of answering his implied inquiry, however, she changed the subject.

“Master Pakku, I accept the conclusion of this duel and consider the slight against my family negated. Your honor and my family’s own both remain intact.” She bowed to him and he returned it. As she turned back to her siblings, who were watching the interaction with shock, he called out again.

“You and your sister can meet me tomorrow morning at dawn, on one condition.” There were shocked gasps from the onlookers, and whispers filled the courtyard. He kept his own eyes on the woman as she turned, eyebrow raised. He saw her sister step up behind her, hand clutching the necklace that had come loose during their fight. He ignored the twinge of recognition at the sight, putting it down to both girls’ resemblance to his beloved.

“Answer two questions, and I will no longer bar you from my lessons.” She tilted her head to the side, studying him, before nodding and replying.

“Very well. What are your two questions?”

“First, where did you learn to make steam that way?” She stiffened but didn’t turn away and he narrowed his eyes before continuing. “And second, what is your name? If you’re to be my student, I need something to call you.” She nodded, considering. He knew she would answer, if only so her sister could get training. She may be content in the healing huts but she would clearly do what was necessary for her sister.

“For your first question, some background information is key. I was abducted from my tribe at the age of eight and taken to the Fire Nation. I lived in the Caldera until I was 15, when I left with Prince Zuko and General Iroh as part of Prince Zuko’s exile and hunt for the Avatar. While it was necessary for me to keep my status as a waterbender a secret, I was able to practice at night for years without any consequences. However, the heat of the Caldera makes it near impossible to create ice unless you have more practice and control, something I was only capable of towards the end of my years there. Instead, it’s much simpler to create steam and recondense it as boiling water. Much of my skills as a waterbender are adapted for a much warmer environment, contrary to the standard.

“As for your second question, I am Kanna of the Southern Water Tribe, daughter of Kya and Chief Hakoda, and—” She cut herself off, hand going to the necklace at her throat and closing her eyes briefly. Pakku wondered vaguely whose wife she was and why didn’t say their name. The rest of his mind was caught on her name. _Kanna_. The same as his beloved. Could it be a simple coincidence? He doubted it.

“Kanna…” he breathed, and his eyes zeroed in on the necklace the younger sister was now putting on. He recognized the pendant. He had spent _hours_ and _hours_ carving that pendant, making sure it was perfect, before finally accepting that it would never be as good as he wanted it to be. He found himself moving forward, reaching for the necklace before he was stopped by a hand to his chest. He turned his head from the necklace to the person in front of him and found the brother had placed himself between Pakku and his sisters.

“I don’t know what you think you’re doing, but I think I’m not going to let you any closer to my sisters today. If I need to fight you, too, I will. I may not be a waterbender, but I am a warrior.” The fierceness in his eyes was also Kanna’s and he wondered how he hadn’t put it together earlier. Three siblings who all had Kanna’s features and stubbornness? These were clearly her grandchildren. He shook his head again, once more trying to clear it of the fog that had seemed to fill it once he’d heard the elder sister’s name.

“I mean them no harm. I simply wish to see the necklace Katara wears. It is after all, the necklace I carved for my beloved Kanna before she left.”

All three of the Southerners' eyes widened. Kanna – his heart still thumped at the name – gripped her makeshift Dao blades tighter and Pakku found himself wondering how he could have missed her ruthless protectiveness earlier. Had she been born a firebender instead of a waterbender her current glare would have burnt him to ashes. It was clear she didn’t trust his statement, although he wasn’t sure if it was because she doubted the truth of it or his intentions behind sharing it. This girl – woman – had clearly been raised in a place where she felt she couldn’t trust many people, which would align with her tale of being raised in the Caldera and then on a Fire Nation ship.

Her younger siblings seemed to be outright disbelieving of his statement. He was unsure why, as he had no real reason to lie about such things, and unlike their sister he didn’t believe they had the history of corrupt dealings to influence them. A quick glance to the Avatar and his furrowed brow and wide eyes showed his own confusion over the turn of events. It was Katara who broke the heavy silence.

“Are you trying to tell me my Gran-Gran was engaged to the likes of _you_?” Ah. That would be the source of their disbelief, then. He acknowledged the small sting that accompanied the words and pushed past it.

“Once, long ago, she was. I loved her more than anyone else, and so our fathers arranged a marriage between us. But, despite my feelings, she never reciprocated and grew to resent her situation. She felt trapped in our engagement by tradition, and was much like you, disagreeing with our treatment of women. Before our wedding ceremony could occur, she ran away. It seems she made it to the Southern Water Tribe, where she was able to start a family. Which has led to you three.”

The eldest sister’s eyes remained cautious but she hummed in acknowledgment. “I don’t know if my siblings were aware of the story, but I was named after my grandmother because my mother always wanted me to have her strength. I don’t know if I’ve lived up to her example, but I’m proud of fighting against the misogyny she found the strength to escape.”

His heart clenched at her words. Kanna’s… departure had made him cling to his traditional views when it maybe would have been better to question why she felt the need to escape them. Now, here he was, attempting to force those same views on her grandchildren and they were refusing to acquiesce, just like his beloved. If he hadn’t already agreed to teach the sisters, he may have anyway once he discovered their heritage.

Now all he could do was press forward and hope that he could make things right. He may have pushed Kanna – his Kanna – away, but he will do his best to reconcile himself with her grandchildren, now that he knows who they are. Especially the eldest sister. Her story intrigued him, as did her evasion of who her Master is. While some of her familiarity stemmed from her relationship to his beloved, it didn’t quite account for all of it. And how could she have had any Master, of the blade or bending, while being forced to serve in the Fire Nation capital? He would win her trust, and her answers, as much as he could

**Author's Note:**

> I've written very very few action scenes in my life because I don't know what I'm doing. Hopefully it was coherent and realistic enough. This is actually currently the snippet I'm most proud of in this series, though that will probably change once I reread it now that it's posted.


End file.
